Fate's Edge
He sat opposite me, his expression unreadable, his eyes drifting down to the meager pile of chips in front of me.
How much did you lose? he asked, his voice smooth. Put it on my tab.
I offered him a polite smile and slid my husband's exclusive black card onto the felt. "No, thank you. My husband doesn't like me spending other men's money. He gets jealous."
The color drained from his face. He let out a soft sigh. "Seraphina, it's been years. Are you still holding a grudge?" His tone was laced with a weary condescension. "That's such a childish lie. Who's going to believe you?"
I just smiled, saying nothing.
My husband, the King of Monaco's casinos, kept me so thoroughly occupied at night that I barely had the energy to hold a grudge.
1
Adrian clearly didn't believe a word I said.
He was about to retort when a glamorous woman slinked up to the table. "Adrian, darling, there you are. I've been looking everywhere for you."
She slid into the chair beside him, her arm linking possessively with his. "Who's this?" she asked, her eyes raking over me with undisguised hostility, as if I were a cheap trinket she'd found at a flea market.
"You look familiar," she mused. "Weren't you that girl from the Lind family? Tsk, look how far you've fallen."
Adrian pulled his gaze from me, his voice dismissive. "An old friend. Seraphina Lind."
"An old friend?" the woman echoed, her hand flying to her mouth in mock surprise. "OhI remember now. You're the one who got jilted at the wedding"
She feigned a slip of the tongue, her apology dripping with insincerity. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I just have no filter, you know? Not like you, Sera. So poised, even after your family went bankrupt, still pretending to be a lady of leisure. You won't hold it against me, will you? After all," she purred, "I'm the one who's Mrs. Shelton now."
It was a blatant provocation.
My expression remained cool. I had no interest in their little performance. I gathered my few remaining chips, ready to find another table.
"Wait."
Adrians hand shot out, pressing down on mine, covering my chips. His eyes were cold. "Seraphina, what do you think you're doing? Did I say you could leave?"
I met his gaze evenly. "Mr. Shelton, I'm moving to another table. Let go."
The "lie" about the black card had clearly gotten under his skin. He let out a cold, humorless laugh.
"What's the matter? Your 'husband' didn't give you enough to play with? Or is it that he doesn't exist at all?" He leaned forward, his voice a low challenge. "Since your husband is so wealthy, why don't we play a few hands?"
The woman, whose name I now remembered was Isabella, chimed in, her voice sharp. "Yes, Sera. Adrian has been talking about you for years, saying how sorry he is." She snuggled against him. "Just think of it as giving us a chance to make it up to you."
Her tone shifted, becoming oily and suggestive. "Or are you just a liar? Tell me, which gentleman's club is your 'husband' the main attraction at?"
I had no desire to get dragged into this. "I'm not interested."
Isabella deliberately raised her voice, drawing the attention of the surrounding tables. "Everyone, come and see! This woman is a sore loser, pretending to be some rich man's wife!"
Heads turned. Whispers started to ripple through the room.
"Isn't that Adrian Shelton? The CEO of Shelton Industries?"
"And that must be his new flame, Isabella."
"Who's the other woman? Daring to cross Mr. Shelton?"
"Never seen her before. Probably some social climber."
"Look at what she's wearing. How did she even get in here?"
The murmurs pricked at my ears. Isabella, seeing she had an audience, grew bolder.
"Are you looking down on my Adrian, Miss Lind? We're offering you a way out, and you're too proud to take it. Or is it that you stole that black card?"
Adrian's face was a thundercloud. He was convinced I was putting on a show, trying to spite him. He stood up, towering over me.
"Seraphina, let's make a bet."
"You win," he said, his voice low and dangerous, "and I'll believe you. I'll believe the card is real."
"You lose," he continued, "and you'll admit the card is fake. You'll apologize." He paused, his eyes glittering with a cruel light. "And you'll admit that you're still in love with me."
"Admit that for the last three years, you've been waiting for me to come back."
"Admit that you never got over me."
Every word was a poisoned dart, designed to humiliate me.
Isabella fanned the flames. "Adrian, she'd never dare. She's a fraud. Look at her clothesdo they even cost a hundred dollars?"
Adrian waved her off impatiently, his eyes locked on me. "Do you dare? Or is your 'husband' just a figment of your imagination? If you don't have the guts, then get on your knees and apologize, and I'll pretend this never happened. My patience is wearing thin, Seraphina."
I watched their tag-team performance. They were so certain. So sure I was the same girl from three years ago, the girl they could manipulate and discard at will.
A slow smile spread across my face.
I nodded.
"Alright," I said. "You name the game. I'm just worried you'll lose everything you have."
Adrian scoffed. "You? Against me?"
2
We moved to the VIP room.
Adrian and Isabella were clearly regulars. The manager bowed and scraped as he ushered them in. "Mr. Shelton, Miss Vance. The usual?"
Adrian waved a dismissive hand and gestured toward me. "Miss Lind here would like to play a few hands tonight."
The manager's gaze fell on me, a flicker of contempt in his eyes. "Is this young lady a member of our casino? She doesn't exactly look the part for the VIP section."
"Stop wasting my time," Adrian snapped. "Put it on my account."
The manager immediately fell silent.
Isabella draped herself over Adrian's lap, a clear display of ownership. They were a team, united against me.
"What shall we play, Sera?" she cooed. "You decide."
Before I could speak, Adrian "decided" for me. "Let's play poker."
Isabella clapped her hands. "Oh, perfect! I remember you used to be terrified of poker, Sera. You always said the rules were too complicated." She looked at Adrian, her voice dripping with false sympathy. "Darling, aren't you being a little mean?"
Her words said one thing, but her eyes danced with malicious glee.
Adrian knew I never touched the game. This was deliberate. He wanted to watch me squirm.
"Do you dare, Seraphina?"
"I have no objection," I said, my voice flat.
The dealer began to shuffle. Adrian and Isabella exchanged a triumphant look. They were sure I was finished.
After I lost the first two hands, Isabella started her victory lap. "Adrian, darling, do you remember three years ago?" she murmured, tracing a finger over his chest. "You were so handsome that day, just walking out with me. Leaving her standing there all alone on the stage tsk, tsk."
Her words were a needle, piercing through my carefully constructed walls.
Three years ago.
The wedding day. I was in my gown, the hall filled with guests. I thought I was the happiest woman in the world.
Then Isabella burst in, clutching her stomach. "Adrian, I'm pregnant with your child!" she'd sobbed, falling to her knees. "You can't marry her!"
The room erupted. Adrian's parents' faces turned to stone. I looked at him, waiting for an explanation. Waiting for him to tell everyone it was a mistake.
But after the initial shock, he let go of my hand.
He took Isabella's.
And in front of everyone, he announced, "The wedding is off. Isabella is carrying my child. I have to do right by her."
I became the laughingstock of the city.
Standing alone on the altar, watching them walk away together. The officiant awkwardly announced the ceremony was over. The guests stared at me with a mixture of pity, scorn, and contempt.
"The Linds have been thoroughly disgraced."
"I heard he had someone on the side. Seraphina acted like he was a prize."
"Well, look at her now. The groom ran off."
Their stares were a physical weight, threatening to crush me. My father, watching from the front row, collapsed on the spot.
"Call."
A cold voice snapped me back to the present. I pushed a stack of chips forward, my face a mask.
Adrian frowned. "You've changed. You used to cry if you lost this much. Now you've lost almost everything, and you're so calm."
Isabella giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Don't scare her, darling. She's not the Lind heiress anymore. She's poor. She can't afford to lose."
She pulled a wad of cash from her purse and tossed it on the table in front of me. The bills landed with a soft thud.
"Take it. A little something from me. Don't say we bullied you. Go on, is it not enough? Adrian said he'd make sure you had a good time tonight."
3
Her tone was one of pitying disdain. "Or is it that your 'husband's' black card has been declined? Do you need me to lend you some money? The interest rate is very low."
My pile of chips dwindled. Adrian and Isabella worked in perfect sync. She'd check her cards, and he'd raise the bet. The dealer's technique was also suspect; he always seemed to give me a useless card at the most critical moments.
Isabella kept glancing at the dealer. His fingers tapped a silent rhythm beneath the table. They were using signals, cheating. They thought I wouldn't notice.
Too bad for them. The first thing my husband taught me in these past three years was how to spot every single cheat in a casino.
But I didn't call them out.
I was waiting.
Isabella, drunk on her success, began to show off the massive diamond on her finger. "Isn't it beautiful, Sera? Adrian gave it to me last month. Five carats." She held her hand out, the ring so close it almost touched my face. "He said I'm the love of his life. He said marrying you was just a business arrangement. He said you could never compare to even a single one of my fingers."
Adrian, watching my "distress," feigned concern. "Seraphina, just admit it. You don't have a husband. Why keep up the act? If you concede, I'll cover all your losses tonight."
He even reached out, as if to touch my face. "Sera, be good. I know you still hate me. But this act will only make me lose more respect for you. Your father is dead, the Lind fortune is gone. What are you trying to prove?"
He put on a show of deep sincerity, but there wasn't a shred of guilt in his eyes. It was as if my father's death, my family's ruin, had nothing to do with him.
"It was my fault back then, but I was forced into it," he sighed. "You know what my parents are like. I couldn't fight them. If you want to blame someone, blame your father for not being strong enough to save his own company. Just come back to me, and I can give you a good life again."
His hypocrisy was nauseating.
I let out a cold laugh. "I could never compare to you, Mr. Shelton. Abandoning your fiance and then swallowing her family's last hope of survival."
Adrian's face changed instantly. Isabella went pale. It was the one part of his past he never wanted brought to light.
After the wedding fiasco, my family's company had its credit lines cut overnight. My father, his hair turning white, went with me to beg the Sheltons for help. After all, our families had been allies for generations. We had a marriage contract.
My father knelt outside their gate for a day and a night.
But Adrian's parents not only refused to help, citing my "shameful" behavior, they actively worked against us, pulling their own investments and encouraging others to do the same.
"The Linds deserved to go bankrupt for raising such a shameless daughter!"
"Adrian was wise to call off the wedding!"
Overnight, we lost everything. My father couldn't take the blow. He jumped from the roof of his office building.
The ground was stained red with his blood.
And Adrian, the man I had loved for ten years, was nowhere to be seen. He was in Europe with Isabella, waiting for their child to be born.
They had absorbed my family's assets. He had built his new life on the bones of my family.
Back in the present, I pushed my last few chips into the center of the table.
"My only regret is that I was blind."
"All in."
"My father's regret was saving a snake."
"Adrian Shelton, does the money you bought with my father's life help you sleep at night?"
4
The barb hit its mark. Adrian's eyes turned venomous. The mask of civility was gone, his face a mask of rage.
He signaled to the dealer. "Deal!" he snarled. "I want to see what you have left to fight me with! I'm going to make you crawl out of here tonight!"
As expected, I lost the final hand.
Adrian revealed his pocket aces. The dealer swept away my last chips.
I had nothing left.
Isabella shot to her feet, her voice shrill with triumph. "You lost! Seraphina, you lost! Admit you were lying! Apologize to us! Admit that black card is fake! Admit you don't have a husband!"
She cackled, pointing a finger at me. "Apologize! On your knees! You bitch, you thought you could compete with me for Adrian? You're not worthy!"
Adrian also stood, his superior air restored. He adjusted his cuffs and said, his voice smooth as silk, "As I said, I'll cover your losses. But you have to admit you have no husband, and that card is a fake."
He stepped closer, his voice dropping to a whisper only I could hear. "And that you still love me. Stop pretending, Seraphina. I know how hard these past three years have been for you. Come back to me. I'll take care of you. Isabella is just a toy. You're the one I want."
His eyes were full of a possessive, arrogant confidence. "Tell me," he murmured, "have you been selling your body to survive?"
The onlookers whispered among themselves.
"So she was faking it."
"No money and she dares to come to the VIP room. Shameless."
"I thought she'd landed some big fish, but she's just Shelton's ex."
"Look, she's lost everything."
"Hurry up!" Isabella shrieked. "Or we're calling security! Throw this liar out! Women like her should be thrown out on the street! Security! Where the hell is security!"
Seeing my lack of reaction, she lunged, her hands reaching for my hair. "You shameless bitch, you're still smiling? I'll tear that smile off your face!"
Adrian didn't move to stop her. He watched, a look of cruel amusement on his face, clearly enjoying the spectacle of my humiliation.
Under their expectant gazes, I slowly stood up.
I looked at them, and a real smile touched my lips.
The smile seemed to unnerve them. They thought I'd finally snapped.
"What are you smiling at?" Isabella spat. "Have you gone mad? Lost your mind from losing?"
I was just waiting. Biding my time. My husband was due for his nightly inspection of the casino floor. And he hated it when people were late.
Bang!
The doors to the VIP room were thrown open.
The casino manager stood there, bowing, his forehead beaded with sweat. "Sir"
A cold, magnetic voice came from behind him. "Get out of the way."
The manager scrambled aside as if he'd been electrocuted.
A tall figure stepped into the room, blocking the light. His presence was a physical force, instantly silencing the room.
The color drained from Adrian and Isabella's faces.
"Who who are you?" Adrian stammered.
The man didn't even look at him.
He took my cold hand in his, pulling me behind him. His palm was warm and steady. His icy gaze swept over Adrian and Isabella.
"Who is bullying my wife?"
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